To my younger self

Looking back over the past years on how far I have come, from a new-bee in this developer world to now being able to identify myself as one, this journey has taught me lessons for life.

Here are a few things for the ones who are starting out; things I wish I could have told my younger self the first day I walked into my work place with as little experience, a heart for code and head full of ? ? ?

Attitude is all that matter.
Our attitude towards situations or life in general is what will shape us as a person, either we over come and excel or succumb to the them. We always have a choice and what we chose is what will be, especially in the start of a career.

Leave your ego at the door.
Remember no job is beneath us. So, don’t be afraid to start at the bottom. No matter what we do or what we are asked to do, be great at it; even if it means sorting the mail.

We all are constantly learning.
Hey! mistakes happen, bugs happen, not everyone knows everything there is under the sun.

So, what do we do?

Own the mistake, fix it, learn from it and don’t repeat it again.
Don’t get caught up in the blame game. Mistakes are the key to learning and what we do about them is what matters.

Be Prepared
I love this cliché

“Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity”.
by Roman philosopher Seneca.

Very well applies for the next thousand years.

Preparation is learning. Learning and getting the basics right, learning about the next technologies or tools we are going to need in the nearest future.

Humans are curious beings; wanting to know everything but

• what is going to benefit us?
• how is it going to help improve our skill set?

Having a discernment and prioritizing them is important. Starting with what we need to know for the next day, then building up the longer run is the way to go.

“Whether you think you can or can’t, you’re right”.

• Am I good enough?
• Will I be able to do it?
• Will they fire me?

And so on, this is a never-ending trail of doubts that are constantly running at the back of our heads on which we’re only wasting our energy.

Think about working out in a gym, the more effort one puts in the more obvious the results are. So, keep working hard; hard-work always outshines sooner or later and keep learning; no one can take away our learning from us.

Secondly, companies don’t hire people only to fire them. A lot of effort and time goes in to find the right someone. The only thing that matters is, "Are we benefiting the company?" Because ultimately, it is about the company, not about you or me.

Don’t obsess over what people think.
We all have finite time and energy and any time we spend over these is unlikely to help us achieve our goals and it won’t make us happier.

But there is something you can do i.e.

Just ask
We all are here to learn and better ourselves, how do you know if you are getting better or worse?

Self-reflection is a trait we all need to develop, an ability to truly asses our self, but something we can do in the meantime is ask. Ask for an honest feedback and before that be willing to welcome it, the flattery as well as the criticism.
Often, we complain about criticism and fail to see it as feedback, take it positively and not personally. This will only help you become a better person.

Finally, learn to love what to do and you will enjoy every part of it. Be earnest in your learning and stop complaining because complaining is no strategy to move forward.

photo by : Rini Simon